Combipatch

relieves symptoms associated with menopause. Re-evaluate with your doctor every 3 to 6 months about the dose you are taking and whether you still need Combipatch.

Combipatch Overview

Reviewed: September 7, 2012

Updated: August 19, 2015

Combipatch is a prescription medication used after menopause to reduce moderate to severe hot flashes, treat moderate to severe menopausal changes in and around the vagina, and treat certain conditions in women before menopause if their ovaries do not make enough estrogens naturally. Combipatch contains two hormones, estradiol and norethindrone, and belongs to a group of drugs called estrogen and progestin combinations. Combipatch works as a hormone replacement to relieve issues caused by hormonal changes.

Combipatch comes in a patch form and is usually applied 2 times each week or every 3 to 4 days.

Common side effects of Combipatch include headache, breast pain, and irregular vaginal bleeding or spotting.

The WHI Memory Study (WHIMS) estrogen plus progestin ancillary study of WHI reported an increased risk of developing probable dementia in postmenopausal women 65 years of age or older during 4 years of treatment with daily CE (0.625 mg) combined with MPA (2.5 mg), relative to placebo. It is unknown whether this finding applies to younger postmenopausal women.

In the absence of comparable data, these risks should be assumed to be similar for other doses of CE and MPA and other combinations and dosage forms of estrogens and progestins.

Estrogens with or without progestins should be prescribed at the lowest effective doses and for the shortest duration consistent with treatment goals and risks for the individual woman.

Estrogen-Alone Therapy

Endometrial Cancer

There is an increased risk of endometrial cancer in a woman with a uterus who uses unopposed estrogens. Adding a progestin to estrogen therapy has been shown to reduce the risk of endometrial hyperplasia, which may be a precursor to endometrial cancer. Adequate diagnostic measures, including directed or random endometrial sampling when indicated, should be undertaken to rule out malignancy in postmenopausal women with undiagnosed persistent or recurring abnormal genital bleeding.

Cardiovascular Disorders and Probable Dementia

Estrogen-alone therapy should not be used for the prevention of cardiovascular disease or dementia.

The WHI estrogen-alone substudy reported increased risks of stroke and DVT in postmenopausal women (50 to 79 years of age) during 7.1 years of treatment with daily oral CE (0.625 mg)-alone relative to placebo.

The WHIMS estrogen-alone ancillary study of WHI reported an increased risk of developing probable dementia in postmenopausal women 65 years of age or older during 5.2 years of treatment with daily CE (0.625 mg)-alone, relative to placebo. It is unknown whether this finding applies to younger postmenopausal women.

In the absence of comparable data, these risks should be assumed to be similar for other doses of CE and other forms of estrogens. Estrogens with or without progestins should be prescribed at the lowest effective doses and for the shortest duration consistent with treatment goals and risks for the individual woman.

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